buick5563 Posted December 15, 2010 Author Share Posted December 15, 2010 (edited) Re: my garage inspector and Verminator...Thanks y'all.Jim, I am going to keep at it, if for no other reason, just to catch Adam's epic (as of this writing 38,698) thread view count. Edited December 15, 2010 by buick5563 Bad punctuation (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957buickjim Posted December 15, 2010 Share Posted December 15, 2010 Well Mike, I will keep the post count up on this site for sure.I have a question - on your first 55 did you do a frame off or frame on resto? I really don't want to pull the car apart, don't have the room or equipment actually, but would like to restore it with body on frame. Can that be done well enough to actually have the car judged at Nationals, and if so I could definitely use some pointers, and lessons learned in the accomplishment of that. Hopefully you will get a new verminator and inspector of cool cars.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 15, 2010 Author Share Posted December 15, 2010 (edited) Another good question that I should probably give it's own thread to...On my Special, I left it on the frame. I rebuilt and painted the engine, but the original Dynaflow was just given a new torque ball seal. It still is rockin' after 120k miles untouched. While the engine was out, I painted the firewall with single stage paint that matched the Cascade Blue. I didn't remove any of the lines coming out of the firewall, I just masked and or replaced grommets. I scraped the old undercoating off of the frame and painted it a semi gloss rattle can paint, most likely Rustoleum as I used to basically live in Lowes. Same with the rear fender wells. I used a heat gun and a scraper and tons of lacquer thinner. I didn't have my monster garage at the time...all of this was done in my driveway and two car garage. I disassembled the car, meaning removing all upholstery, and trim then took it to a paint shop with a good reputation. They fixed all of the rust, took the car to bare metal, and primed and painted it. My first estimate was for $5k. They said if I helped with removal/ installation of some of the parts that it would cost less. Every weekend, I would drive 60 miles each way to check on the progress, and pick up various pieces, like fender bolts or other parts that needed to be plated. I assisted with the windshield installation and other tasks, which made me learn about how to do things. The entire time, Willie (Old Tank) was supervising and keeping them on task. Did I mention that this paint shop was in his town? I had the seats reupholstered and the door panels made up by a shop that did OK work, then I had an upholsterer friend do the tighten up on the shoddy seats. I reused the backglass. Half of the chrome I got done at the bumper shop in town, and the pot metal parts I sent to J&P plating (they do good work) I just steel wooled and waxed my grille. I originally sent many of these parts to The Finishing Touch, but discovered that they cost muchos dolares!!! To quote me: "if I was doing a 55 Century convertible I'd pay for this, but for a lowly two door sedan?" No. This time I will most likely use them due to the value of a convertible vs. Special sedan.To be honest with you, I ended up paying thousands more on the paint. I often tell people that I paid more than a new Hyundai costs. However, my car has some of the best paint I have seen anywhere at any price.I also (not necessarily your case) added factory air. For the suspension, I just cleaned it and painted everything black like it would have come from the factory, a fact that never eludes me when I am doing all of this crap on my current project.I got the car back from the painter 30 days before I needed to leave for the Buick Nationals in Batavia NY. I had a pile of parts (stainless, upholstery, new carpet, etc.) that I installed in a mad dash toward the finish line, which I accomplished and drive 1800 miles and got my Senior on the first attempt.As an aside, when I went for my Senior Preservation Award, the chassis judge was lying on his belly looking under my car wondering how it was a Senior car. The key is, that officially in BCA judging you aren't supposed to do anything other than "take a knee".My goal when I started was to maintain originality and the soul of the car and I feel I accomplished both.Is it possible? Absolutely. Get a judging manual and figure out what absolutely needs to be correct. All of us here on the forum can help with whatever you need, and are happy to do so. Edited March 23, 2011 by buick5563 I typed all of this on my iPhone, and I made mistakes...sue me (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted December 16, 2010 Share Posted December 16, 2010 You've already lapped me on the progress, so thread views don't matter...halfway:D:cool:Everything looks great...I can't wait until I can get the engine and trans back in the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957buickjim Posted December 16, 2010 Share Posted December 16, 2010 Mike,Thanks for the great post on the restoration. You hit some of the major things I was thinking about and how to tackle my restoration on my special. Just like yours, it is a sedan, so a huge investment will never pay off, except in the eyes of the beholder and of course, the owner. Thanks for the tips on the plater. Could you provide me with their number? You can PM me with it if you would like.The thing that I am trying to figure out is the underside of the vehicle, and the frame stuff. You touched on it in your post, but how the heck did you actually accomplish it..ie, jack the car up on blocks, etc, scrape the whole underside? Thats where your experience is invaluable to us novices on this type of activity.I think a separate post on frame on restorations would be really helpful. I will launch one and maybe we can get tips from the whole shooting match on this. Thanks again for your input. I really appreciate you insight and look forward to more lively discussion on how to make our babies look new again!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 16, 2010 Author Share Posted December 16, 2010 I'm getting closer to full dress for StealthBob. Check out the original asbestos covering for the choke pipe. I cleaned it up and sprayed it with a light coat of white paint just to freshen it up. That sucker is sure easier to route when the body is off!I also got the gas and vac lines painted and installed.Plus, I cleaned up the camera lens for ya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stealthbob Posted December 16, 2010 Share Posted December 16, 2010 She sure is a beauty!Thanks man! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted December 18, 2010 Share Posted December 18, 2010 She sure is a beauty!Yeah, but is the colour right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stealthbob Posted December 18, 2010 Share Posted December 18, 2010 You know Derek....we can almost sound like the "Dues" or "©lassic" debate. ....it looks Green to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEarl Posted December 18, 2010 Share Posted December 18, 2010 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEarl Posted December 18, 2010 Share Posted December 18, 2010 Mikey, you've got a PM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted December 18, 2010 Share Posted December 18, 2010 :D:D:D:DI was just harassing Mike.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 18, 2010 Author Share Posted December 18, 2010 I got Mr. E's PM in regards to the triangular piece under the generator. He says it should not be whatever random shade of green ( ) I chose, but unpainted. I assumed that double bolt was only for the A/C cars (compressor mount attaches to it). So I thought it (the triangular piece) was mounted when the car was painted. I will check my sources, but it is conceivable that I made a mistake...Harassing Mike is fun. I do it all the time. He claims to enjoy it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrEarl Posted December 19, 2010 Share Posted December 19, 2010 (edited) :D:D:D:DI was just harassing Mike....My point exactly. and I'm just har ass ing you. I guess now we can add "triangular piece" to the color/colour, dues and Classic debate. Edited December 19, 2010 by MrEarl (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 19, 2010 Author Share Posted December 19, 2010 Please don't make me bring up pie again, it makes me look like an idiot... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted December 19, 2010 Share Posted December 19, 2010 3.14159 etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38Buick 80C Posted December 19, 2010 Share Posted December 19, 2010 3.14159 etc.Now that's the kinda Pi I get excited about... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 19, 2010 Author Share Posted December 19, 2010 ...... it makes me look like an idiot...So does this (3.14159 etc) but even more so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old-tank Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 I got Mr. E's PM in regards to the triangular piece under the generator. He says it should not be whatever random shade of green ( ) I chose, but unpainted. I assumed that double bolt was only for the A/C cars (compressor mount attaches to it). So I thought it (the triangular piece) was mounted when the car was painted. I will check my sources, but it is conceivable that I made a mistake...Harassing Mike is fun. I do it all the time. He claims to enjoy it.Well it looks like I led you astray again. Just checked my original car and that piece is unpainted...only the center of the bolt/stud in the head is painted. You should immediately remove that thing (ignoring scratches on the surrounding parts) and make it correct. In addition I will surrender the senior awards on the cars that are just like your project--->NOT! Look at the big picture and consider not painting on a future project...that is not something that any current judge will notice.Willie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 21, 2010 Author Share Posted December 21, 2010 Good eye Lamar.The level of tearing things apart (meaning the dispute of colors, plating, etc.) that nobody will ever see on a finished car is getting ridiculous. I've already covered up a bunch of parts that I spent hours restoring, and fretting over, and I don't even have the body on.Oh, and the triangle piece on my Senior car is green also... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted December 21, 2010 Share Posted December 21, 2010 Mine is green, too...but it was painted when I pulled it off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957buickjim Posted December 27, 2010 Share Posted December 27, 2010 Mike, I know this post may be a little late, but I rebuilt my 2bbl Carter and cleaned it up and painted it with the Eastwood carb paint, gold. It is very close to the original yellow chromate / zinc plating that was on the carb, which I matched when I cleaned the bowl and internals out. Used the Eastwoood tin plating kit, which i would recommend to plate things to a zinc like plating. Wire brushed those other parts which I could not take apart. Attached are some pic's of the carb before and after. Hope this helps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted December 27, 2010 Share Posted December 27, 2010 JIM, these parts look great! Pardon my Rip Van Winkle ignorance but who is Eastwood, which this forum so often credits with successful restoration paint products? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Rob McDonald Posted December 27, 2010 Share Posted December 27, 2010 WHOA, never mind, I just popped into Eastwood's website. The phrase, "Kid at a Candy Store" springs to mind. Pretty overwhelming but it looks like they're well set up for online orders. I'll try them out with some stainless trim buffing products.WINTERPEG DEREK, I'll let you know about their over-the-border service, if you haven't bought tons from them already. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 28, 2010 Author Share Posted December 28, 2010 Jim, Thanks for the pic, but the four barrel Carter is silver.My two barrel Stromberg on my Special is gold, but I found an NOS still in the box carb when I restored my other 55. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted December 28, 2010 Share Posted December 28, 2010 Thanks Rob. Eastwood does have some distributors north of the border, including one up here. I haven't really used them although I too have the kid in a candy store feeling about them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957buickjim Posted December 29, 2010 Share Posted December 29, 2010 Mike, NOS trumps rebuild / restore hands down. I do think that the Eastwood Carb Silver paint would be just as good as the gold on a Carter 4bbl carb restore. Something to keep in the back pocket if you need it. Keep up the good work. Looking forward to seeing things as they progress. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted December 31, 2010 Author Share Posted December 31, 2010 I am pasting this next part from a discussion on grille finishes for the 1955 owners in case somebody is reading this thread and missed the 1957 grille discussion. It is a very important thing to note, especially since I DIDN'T know this and I know a lot about 55's...From Old Tank:Very interesting discussion! Out of curiosity I looked at a NOS 1955 grill in my closet (it is NOS and never installed, but has casting defects in the poor chrome on the front face---I always found better used ones) and it too is painted with a dull silver paint on the backside and in the mesh. That will maybe save a re-plating cost on a grill that has a decent front face, but some pits/bubbles in the mesh...just smooth them out and paint. I wonder if there is powder coat that will duplicate that finish since rattle can silver will not hold up to bug juice.Willie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudbone Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Thanks for that grill info Mike/Willie. The plater that I talked to said the same thing about the front only being plated. He said he could do show chrome on a grill for about $350.00 but you have to do your own painting. Mud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted January 18, 2011 Author Share Posted January 18, 2011 Finally got back to the garage after the holidays.I ordered an exhaust system from a guy Bhigdog recommended. Before I put his name out on the interwebz, I want to make sure that it fits as good as it looks. I ordered a muffler and exhaust pipe from him. He sent me the bend card in lieu of actually bending the tailpipe and spending $70 on shipping. All told I spent under $200. Thanks Bob. I also began the rebuild process of my rear shocks per the instructions Old Tank has here:Buick RestorerI just want to say it didn't sound easy on Willie's website....and it wasn't....I had to replace my bench vise and while I was at it I bought a shop press.Why? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudbone Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Mike did you cut your levers to get them off? Mine are not yet proven but I clamped my shock in a vise. I then lightly heated the very end of the lever at the spines. Using an air chisel with a blunt tool I drove off the lever with very little difficulty. After cleaning and installing a new seal I just pressed the lever back on with a press. Like I said mine are not proven as it will be a while before mine is on the road. Mud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted January 18, 2011 Author Share Posted January 18, 2011 (edited) I may try that on shock number two. Shock number one left a lot of collateral damage.Truthfully, I think I am seeing a self-fulfilling prophecy. I didn't want to do this, but I knew I didn't want to spend $400 having em rebuilt by Apple Hydraulics. (a fine company, just really proud of their work) Edited January 18, 2011 by buick5563 First time I ever spelled prophecy...still doesn't look right (see edit history) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957buickjim Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Ok, I was trying to figure out how to rebuild the shocks on my 57 Buick, but mine don't look like yours. I have replaceable shocks. Can they be rebuilt? I have them (spiral cases) and had them replaced with new shocks, but am wondering about such replacements when it comes to judging?Mike, I am glad that you didn't get hurt..you must have had some pretty pent up energy for the vise to break like that! WOW.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smartin Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Hemmings Motor News: Buick Buick for saleThe link goes to a shock rebuilding service in Hemmings...for the 57. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1957buickjim Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Thanks Adam..I will research it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thriller Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Mike, you shouldn't be so hard on your tools (typed the man who continues to evade actually working on a restoration project...). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted January 18, 2011 Author Share Posted January 18, 2011 It didn't work Mud. Had to cut off the other one, too. I'm not saying this to be dramatic...DON'T TRY TO DO THIS!!! Send them away to a pro. If I got mine back looking and working the way mine do now, I would ask for my money back. Sorry, I'm just mad because I walked away to avoid further frustration and when I was checking the pitman arm seal that was already leaking, I bashed my nugget on the frame and bled all over the floor. Not a good day in the garage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stealthbob Posted January 18, 2011 Share Posted January 18, 2011 Not a good day in the garage.Keep your chin up and your head down....and remember "Keep on the Sunny-side" <object height="385" width="480"><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XKTFNQAqjpI?fs=1&hl=en_US" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" height="385" width="480"></object> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buick5563 Posted January 18, 2011 Author Share Posted January 18, 2011 Man, I'm glad I didn't have a mouthful of anything when I read that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mudbone Posted January 19, 2011 Share Posted January 19, 2011 Sorry it didn’t work out for you. I must have been lucky as mine came right off. I hope you heal up fast. Mud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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